Chapter 380 : Chapter 380

Chapter 380: The Laboratory for Researching [Transcendent Knowledge]

After registering, the Witch Sister in front of me handed over a "Permission."

After receiving it, I felt that instead of a Permission, it felt more like... a Lesser Spellbook?

"Little Han, don't try to dismantle it for no reason. This Permission is actually constructed using the same techniques as a Spellbook. It has extremely high-level confidentiality technology inside. If it is dismantled, this Permission will be unusable."

"Is... is that right? Then I won't touch it..."

Being suddenly explained to, I awkwardly pulled my hand back.

I was indeed curious about what was inside just now, as it felt just like a Lesser Spellbook.

I didn't expect it to have confidentiality technology?

I truly learned something new there.

"Let's go, Little Han."

At this moment, Teacher Ji Niang reminded me, then led me away from the area.

She felt Little Han should have less contact with witches like that, or she would be led astray.

As I passed through a semi-transparent doorway, this Permission served as a credential, allowing me to pass through unimpeded.

At this moment, I didn't even feel the space change but was already in another space.

Unlike the sparse number of witches in the previous hall, the number of witches coming and going here was much higher.

Some were moving in a rush, while others were leisurely strolling as if sightseeing.

This place was like a complex maze.

The walls were covered with embedded metal plates flashing with Rune Rituals.

Based on my shallow understanding of runes, these runes had effects like reinforcement, perception, and data recording and storage.

To translate that into layman's terms: the walls were reinforced and sturdy, and they had built-in cameras and sensors.

The labs along the corridors used fully transparent glass, allowing one to see the witches busy inside, while some labs were fully enclosed, with the space even being re-segmented to prevent any information from the interior from being transmitted to the outside world.

After a brief observation, I saw the most "high-end" equipment here.

The witches inside the labs were basically all wearing uniform Lab Coats.

These Lab Coats had traces of alchemy and enchantment, which, if taken outside, would likely be powerful armor that was invulnerable to blades and fire, but here, such technology was only used on standardized clothing.

Teacher Ji Niang continued to lead me, and I quietly memorized the route to avoid getting lost the next time I came here.

This place felt like a maze, but the main corridor seemed to be a straight path.

This huge laboratory must have had a lot of effort put into its design, immediately contrasting with the research base in the Ninglan New City Underground City.

Along the way, the hurried witches would show a hint of surprise when they saw me, while the leisurely strolling witches would deliberately walk over from far away and ignore Teacher Ji Niang to flirt with me.

It was safe to say that the number of instances where "I don't know them, but they know me" increased significantly upon my arrival.

I even ran into the witch who had previously asked me for the original Rune Rituals for the Nightmare Spell here.

"It's Little Han To think you would come here. Do you want to come see my place, Older Sister? We've almost finished refining the Nightmare Spell you created earlier. Do you want to come and see when we make the Spellbook?"

"Um... that, I'm busy. I'm truly sorry..."

"It's okay, it's okay. It doesn't matter if you don't come. When the Spellbook is finalized, we'll send you a copy."

"Mhm mhm, thank you, Older Sister... but that's really not necessary."

I quickly brushed them off.

I actually didn't have a high demand for this type of spell, and although I was the one who created it, it would be impossible not to want the Spellbook version.

Since they were actively offering to send it, I would just take it as a collector's item.

The witch I was currently facing was relatively restrained in her attitude towards me.

Now I understood what the witch at the front desk meant when she told Teacher Ji Niang not to let me be snatched away...

"We've arrived. It's this one."

At this moment, Teacher Ji Niang suddenly reminded me.

I almost thought another witch was coming to strike up a conversation with me.

After reacting, I looked at the door in front of me.

This door was fully enclosed, a noticeable difference from the semi-open labs with transparent glass.

The overall security level looked very high.

Then, Teacher Ji Niang simply pushed the door open with her hand, as if she didn't need a key.

But I could see the Permission flash briefly.

It seemed that this was the key.

I quickly followed, also placing my hand on the doorknob.

Instantly, I felt the flash of the Permission.

It seemed this Permission was indeed a key, and a universal one at that.

"Little Han, the permission you received earlier is also the key to opening this door. It's very convenient."

"Mhm."

I nodded in understanding, but my gaze swept across the interior.

Everything here was new to me.

I felt like a country girl from the village, curious about everything.

The internal space of this lab was very large, seemingly expanded by a Spatial Type Spell.

The various instruments inside looked very complete, and their strange shapes made it impossible to tell what they were used for.

The most unique item was the large instrument in the center.

I could feel a powerful Earth Vein Energy on it, held back but ready to be unleashed.

It was like a massive platform, where a powerful Earth Vein Energy acted as a carrier, lifting a blurry, mosaic-like thing floating in mid-air.

"This is the most advanced Earth Vein Supercomputing Comprehensive Operating System in the laboratory. The model we used before naturally can't compare to this one," Teacher Ji Niang explained when she saw my interest.

"This is also an Earth Vein system?"

I looked at the annular instrument, surrounded by a display screen of converging Earth Vein Energy, with a series of data I couldn't understand displayed on it.

"Of course. There are many types of Earth Vein systems. The one equipped for a laboratory of this level is naturally the highest one. Are you curious about what it's holding in the center?"

"Um... I'm not sure..."

I shook my head, looking at the "mosaic" in the center, which was sealed and lifted by a massive amount of Earth Vein Chains, but a possible answer was forming in my mind.

Just now, when I tried to fully observe it with Spirit Vision, I felt a sudden palpitation—an instinctual self-protection mechanism that surpassed my cognition.

It seemed that even Spirit Vision was autonomously filtering out the information emitted by this unknown object because it was definitely something I couldn't comprehend right now.

"Alright... it seems you have some guesses. I can tell you directly: it is a portion of... [Transcendent Knowledge]."

"This... is it?"

The guess in my heart was confirmed by Teacher Ji Niang at this moment, which truly surprised me.

No wonder this lab was fully enclosed.

"Yes, this is [Transcendent Knowledge]. I'm very curious, what does it look like in your Floating World-level Spirit Vision?"

Ji Niang turned to look at me, asking curiously.

"It... is blurry. It's like a mass of mosaics. It seems to have triggered an acute reaction in my Spirit Vision, making me subconsciously refuse to accept the information it's feeding back. So, it can only appear as a mosaic in my eyes..."

"Mosaic?"

Ji Niang was slightly surprised, but quickly seemed to understand.

"Of course... subconscious self-protection. This might be the reason why your Innate Spirit Vision hasn't driven you mad and why you've grown to this point... Have you tried to fight this subconscious reaction?"

"Yes."

I nodded.

After all, when I first tried to accept the talent of Spirit Vision, I did manage to break through this self-protection mechanism, but it was very difficult.

"It's good that you have."

"Mhm."

I nodded.

Actually, I thought the most direct way was the Unity of Knowledge and Action Spellbook, but I could only test it bit by bit.

I didn't know how much information this self-protection mechanism was filtering out for me.

If I completely opened it all at once, my consciousness or cognition might be instantly overwhelmed, which would be courting death.

Just as I was about to attempt it, Teacher Ji Niang interrupted me.

"Don't be so impatient. I only suggested it. I brought you here this time to familiarize you with the environment and atmosphere. We're not starting the research right away."

"Oh."

I nodded silently, realizing my own recklessness.

The next moment, Teacher Ji Niang handed me a set of the Lab Coats I had seen the witches wearing earlier.

Although they were called Lab Coats, they were similar to white coats but not monotonous.

Even worn outside, they were quite good-looking.

"Try it on first. This is a formal laboratory now, not the small-scale practices from before. Wear this when entering the lab in the future to prevent subtle variables from causing errors in the experiment."

"Mhm."

I took the coat and put it on.

It surprisingly fits quite well.

It seemed to integrate many Solidified Spells and Enchantment properties, such as a dust-free spell, self-adjusting size, durability, self-repair, and focus enhancement.

If I were to just study this coat, it might take up a lot of my time.

Next, Teacher Ji Niang placed a stack of paper documents in front of me.

It was a thick bundle, heavy to hold.

"This is... um... the Laboratory-grade Earth Vein Supercomputing Comprehensive Operating System Manual?"

I flipped through the bottom.

It seemed many were user manuals for various instruments, not just for the Earth Vein system.

"You should learn more about the instruments in the laboratory. You might not have had the chance to use them before, so I didn't tell you about them in detail. But things are different now. After all, you will be my assistant, and you can't be completely ignorant. You must remember the usage specifications. The value of every single instrument here is more precious than all the Arcanite Gold in your pocket right now."

Teacher Ji Niang explained to me patiently.

She had originally planned to use the afternoon to explain all of this to me.

After all, sharpening the knife doesn't delay the cutting of the wood.

Since they had been preparing for so long, they weren't in a rush for these two days.

At this moment, Teacher Ji Niang not only explained the purpose of these instruments using the manuals but also let me try them out, explaining in great detail.

I even felt that Teacher Ji Niang wanted to teach me how to hand-craft the critical components of these instruments so I could replace them directly, or crudely use a hand-crafted simple instrument in case of an emergency where no instruments were available.

I have to say, spells are sometimes so convenient.

Hand-crafting high-precision and sophisticated instruments—was every witch a grand master artisan?

But a witch's advantage was evident here, and there was no helping it.

No harm in learning.

Although this increased my study pressure, I would just memorize it for now.

I had the Memory Bookshelf Spellbook; I could repeatedly study the techniques when I had free time.

Time passed quickly.

Here, I couldn't see the outside day or night; only the cold numbers displayed the time.

For the witches busy here, the one-day limit could naturally be ignored.

After all, from the perspective of the Void, a day and night was just one rotation of a planet.

Transcendent Witches, who had long escaped the limits of the biological clock, had a need for sleep, but not much.

I only realized it was night when I felt a hint of fatigue and yawned.

"It seems you're sleepy."

"Mhm... a little, yes. According to my old biological clock, I might have been asleep by now."

"Early to bed and early to rise? That's a truly regular lifestyle."

"Teacher Ji Niang, I heard that Witchification can reduce one's reliance on sleep, is that true?"

"Witchification only elevates the life level; any other benefits are incidental. The higher the life level, the deeper one's energy, stamina, and so on. If you maintain your old lifestyle, it is a low-consumption state for your elevated self, so naturally, you won't feel too sleepy."

"Then... should I go back now?"

I asked tentatively.

"Go ahead. I'll be here all the time. Come over tomorrow when you're free. We haven't even finished familiarizing you with the instruments here."

"Mhm, I understand."

I nodded.

But I also lamented a bit.

Once upon a time, Teacher Ji Niang was a person who punched out on time.

Now, she was completely devoted to this project.

The change was truly significant.

However, at this moment, I also realized a problem.

"Wait, Teacher Ji Niang, if you're here all day... what about the class?"

"The class? I'll check in when I have time, of course. Any important announcements can just be made in the group chat," Teacher Ji Niang explained as a matter of course.

"Ah this..."

But thinking back to college, where I barely saw my counselor a few times a semester, everything seemed to make sense.

But thinking about a class where neither the teacher nor the Class President was in charge... wasn't that a bit irresponsible?

"Um... Teacher Ji Niang, how about we change the Class President for Class 14? I feel like I'm a bit incompetent."

"The Class President is merely a symbol, and the Class President position has benefits in the class... Alright, for you, those benefits are indeed dispensable. Do you really not want to be the Class President anymore?"

"Mhm... I feel like I've never done anything proper for the class. The one who's always managed the class has been Tu Xingyue, right? How about transferring the Class President position to her? She's probably put in a lot of effort for the class."

"Tu Xingyue? I have some impressions of her. A competitive young girl. Are you sure?"

"Mhm, let's do that. I should give others a chance, and... I've left The Script now. If there are any future grade-wide activities where the Class President has to attend, my situation would be very awkward."

"That's true. Then you can hand over the duties to her... though there doesn't seem to be much to hand over. Never mind, I'll handle it then," Ji Niang said casually.